This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art. In many medical procedures it is common to advance an elongate device such as a catheter or guidewire into the body. In at least some of these procedures, it can also be desirable to rotate the device as well. Generally this is accomplished by the physician or other health care professional grasping the proximal portion of the device and pushing, pulling, and/or twisting. While effective, this method does not permit precise control, and the person manipulating the device can easily fatigue. Furthermore, this method often exposes the physician or healthcare professional to radiation from the imaging systems used to monitor the procedure.
Attempts have been made to provide an advancer for automatically advancing medical devices. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,276,044 for System And Methods For Advancing A Catheter; U.S. Published Application No. 2008/0045892 for System And Methods For Advancing A Catheter; Published Application No. 2006/0041245 for Systems And Methods For Medical Device Advancement And Rotation; U.S. Published Application No. US2007/0149946 for Advancer System For Coaxial Medical Devices, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. However a simple, reliable device that is capable of selectively advancing, retracting and rotating a device has not been previously available.